TEMPERATURES have dropped and across the country and people are panicking because their boilers are on the blink.

But they need not fear, because in Uddingston, South Lanarkshire, 1000 advisors are ready to take their calls and 900 engineers are on standby to come to their rescue.

It is the busiest time of the year for Scottish Gas's biggest base in the country, and they are expecting to handle around 80,000 calls from customers in Scotland and the north of England.

Their weather forecasters are predicting the lowest temperatures so far this winter, prompting a peak in calls from cold customers.

Customer service boss Rob Hanrahan said calls increase by 10,000 with every degree the temperature drops.

He said: "As the temperature drops we get a massive spike in demand."

Work for the gas company is seasonal, with demand for repairs doubling between October and February.

When the temperature drops to around 4C or 5C, people switch on their boilers and any problems that may have occurred over summer become obvious.

Calls are handled by customer service advisors who identify the most vulnerable callers, such as elderly or unwell people and families with babies or young children.

These callers – around one in 15 of all customers – are prioritised and engineer can be sent to help them within two hours.

All calls are passed to despatch teams who handle the engineers schedules and work out who is nearest to these customers.

The engineers cover their own 'patches', visiting customers homes in that area.

In their vans they carry eight out of 10 of the most commonly needed repair parts. Parts can also be ordered from the main distribution centre in Leicester, to arrive within 24 hours.

Technical engineer Paul Dailly, 32, covers Paisley and the Glasgow area, working around 50 hours a week.

He lives in Neilston, East Renfrewshire and in the winter of 2010 he won an award for his efforts in helping customers in the freezing conditions.

Unable to move his car, he packed a tool box and walked more than seven miles through 18in of snow to help people in his home town.

He was awarded Scottish Gas's Simple Thank You Award.

Paul said: "They are happy to see you and they are even happier to see you go once it is fixed.

"It is a really rewarding job - it is challenging but if you are doing your job right and you are going to someone who needs help, it makes all the hours a bit, more bearable.

"If you go to someone on Christmas Day, everybody has visitors coming and the last thing they want is their boiler not to be working.

"But you feel the heat rising in the house and the smiles start coming on their faces."

Every year the 5500sq m Uddingston hub takes almost 3million calls, managing more than 1.7m engineer callouts for customers.

Each of their employees handles around 900 calls from customers in the run- up to Christmas.

On Christmas Day alone they could handle more than 1000 calls, mainly from people with broken boilers.

Around 200 call centre staff work receiving calls and forwarding on information to engineers.

This year's prediction for callouts is nearly twice what they handled last year (594), but around half of the 1808 calls they got in the winter of 2010.

Pauline Sweeney, 28, from Hamilton, will be working the morning shift on Christmas Day this year.

She said: "Even on Christmas Day you stick to priorities and put the vulnerable people first. Safety is the main priority for us.

"You can tell by their voice they are old so I ask if they have any family.

"I take it very seriously if someone is in a vulnerable situation. We have to get to them as soon as possible.

"I think about my Gran –she's 85 – and if she was without heating I know how much she would struggle."

A lot of lessons have been learned from the winter of 2010, when more than 30 staff at the hub were snowed in at work.

Thermometers on cars parked at the centre read -10.5C and engineers struggled to dig out their vans.

Although many went above and beyond the call of duty to help customers, this year the office is equipped with blankets and all engineers have winter tyres on their vans.

They have a fleet of 4x4 vehicles on standby to reach customers.

Rob said: "A lot elderly customers see us as an emergency service.

"If the roads are blocked with bad conditions it is difficult for us to get out but these guys are empowered to do what they need to do.

"In extreme circumstances we have ordered food for customers or sent taxis out with fan heaters.

"These guys are fantastic at identifying the cases where such action is necessary.

We might be the only people who know a vulnerable person needs help, so we take that very seriously."

matty.sutton@eveningtimes.co.uk

PAULINE SWEENEY

With winter upon us, Scottish Gas engineer Paul Dailly has some winter tips for you and your home to make sure you're not left out in the cold.

1. Bleed your radiators: to make sure they are working properly.

2. Keep the heat in with curtains: Hang heavy, lined curtains at windows to help keep the heat in and close them as soon as it starts getting dark.

3. Set your thermostat: Set your room thermostat at or around a temperature of 21C (70F).

4. Wrap up your water tank: and insulate hot water. This will cost you around £15 and you'll save £35 on the boiler jacket and £10 on the pipes in the first year.

5. Insulate your walls: Did you know your home loses a third of its heat through the walls? Insulating wall cavities could save you around £110 a year, keeping you warmer for longer.

6. Layer your loft: Many homes have just 100mm of insulation. Insulating your loft with at least 270mm (10in –11in) of insulation could save you up to £145 on fuel bills.

7. Ventilation nation: Remember to leave air bricks and vents clear as your home needs ventilated to stop condensation and ensure a supply of fresh air. Wood-burning stoves, gas boilers and open fires also need a good air supply to ensure they burn efficiently.

8. Service appliances: Heating appliances should be serviced once a year by a Gas Safe-registered engineer to help ensure they are working safely and efficiently.

9. Remote Control Your Heating: Using a smart phone app, PC or laptop you can turn your boiler on or off making it easier to heat your home when needed.

10. Stay safe: Also, it's vital that you don't forget to have an audible carbon monoxide alarm fitted and that you test it regularly.

TEMPERATURES have dropped and across the country and people are panicking because their boilers are on the blink.

But they need not fear, because in Uddingston, South Lanarkshire, 1000 advisors are ready to take their calls and 900 engineers are on standby to come to their rescue.

It is the busiest time of the year for Scottish Gas's biggest base in the country, and they are expecting to handle around 80,000 calls from customers in Scotland and the north of England.

Their weather forecasters are predicting the lowest temperatures so far this winter, prompting a peak in calls from cold customers.

Customer service boss Rob Hanrahan said calls increase by 10,000 with every degree the temperature drops.

He said: "As the temperature drops we get a massive spike in demand."

Work for the gas company is seasonal, with demand for repairs doubling between October and February.

When the temperature drops to around 4C or 5C, people switch on their boilers and any problems that may have occurred over summer become obvious.

Calls are handled by customer service advisors who identify the most vulnerable callers, such as elderly or unwell people and families with babies or young children.

These callers – around one in 15 of all customers – are prioritised and engineer can be sent to help them within two hours.

All calls are passed to despatch teams who handle the engineers schedules and work out who is nearest to these customers.

The engineers cover their own 'patches', visiting customers homes in that area.

In their vans they carry eight out of 10 of the most commonly needed repair parts. Parts can also be ordered from the main distribution centre in Leicester, to arrive within 24 hours.

Technical engineer Paul Dailly, 32, covers Paisley and the Glasgow area, working around 50 hours a week.

He lives in Neilston, East Renfrewshire and in the winter of 2010 he won an award for his efforts in helping customers in the freezing conditions.

Unable to move his car, he packed a tool box and walked more than seven miles through 18in of snow to help people in his home town.

He was awarded Scottish Gas's Simple Thank You Award.

Paul said: "They are happy to see you and they are even happier to see you go once it is fixed.

"It is a really rewarding job - it is challenging but if you are doing your job right and you are going to someone who needs help, it makes all the hours a bit, more bearable.

"If you go to someone on Christmas Day, everybody has visitors coming and the last thing they want is their boiler not to be working.

"But you feel the heat rising in the house and the smiles start coming on their faces."

Every year the 5500sq m Uddingston hub takes almost 3million calls, managing more than 1.7m engineer callouts for customers.

Each of their employees handles around 900 calls from customers in the run- up to Christmas.

On Christmas Day alone they could handle more than 1000 calls, mainly from people with broken boilers.

Around 200 call centre staff work receiving calls and forwarding on information to engineers.

This year's prediction for callouts is nearly twice what they handled last year (594), but around half of the 1808 calls they got in the winter of 2010.

Pauline Sweeney, 28, from Hamilton, will be working the morning shift on Christmas Day this year.

She said: "Even on Christmas Day you stick to priorities and put the vulnerable people first. Safety is the main priority for us.

"You can tell by their voice they are old so I ask if they have any family.

"I take it very seriously if someone is in a vulnerable situation. We have to get to them as soon as possible.

"I think about my Gran –she's 85 – and if she was without heating I know how much she would struggle."

A lot of lessons have been learned from the winter of 2010, when more than 30 staff at the hub were snowed in at work.

Thermometers on cars parked at the centre read -10.5C and engineers struggled to dig out their vans.

Although many went above and beyond the call of duty to help customers, this year the office is equipped with blankets and all engineers have winter tyres on their vans.

They have a fleet of 4x4 vehicles on standby to reach customers.

Rob said: "A lot elderly customers see us as an emergency service.

"If the roads are blocked with bad conditions it is difficult for us to get out but these guys are empowered to do what they need to do.

"In extreme circumstances we have ordered food for customers or sent taxis out with fan heaters.

"These guys are fantastic at identifying the cases where such action is necessary.

We might be the only people who know a vulnerable person needs help, so we take that very seriously."

matty.sutton@eveningtimes.co.uk

TEN TIPS TO STAY SAFE

With winter upon us, Scottish Gas engineer Paul Dailly has some winter tips for you and your home to make sure you're not left out in the cold.

1. Bleed your radiators: to make sure they are working properly.

2. Keep the heat in with curtains: Hang heavy, lined curtains at windows to help keep the heat in and close them as soon as it starts getting dark.

3. Set your thermostat: Set your room thermostat at or around a temperature of 21C (70F).

4. Wrap up your water tank: and insulate hot water. This will cost you around £15 and you'll save £35 on the boiler jacket and £10 on the pipes in the first year.

5. Insulate your walls: Did you know your home loses a third of its heat through the walls? Insulating wall cavities could save you around £110 a year, keeping you warmer for longer.

6. Layer your loft: Many homes have just 100mm of insulation. Insulating your loft with at least 270mm (10in –11in) of insulation could save you up to £145 on fuel bills.

7. Ventilation nation: Remember to leave air bricks and vents clear as your home needs ventilated to stop condensation and ensure a supply of fresh air. Wood-burning stoves, gas boilers and open fires also need a good air supply to ensure they burn efficiently.

8. Service appliances: Heating appliances should be serviced once a year by a Gas Safe-registered engineer to help ensure they are working safely and efficiently.

9. Remote Control Your Heating: Using a smart phone app, PC or laptop you can turn your boiler on or off making it easier to heat your home when needed.

10. Stay safe: Also, it's vital that you don't forget to have an audible carbon monoxide alarm fitted and that you test it regularly.